He learned that the wagon was loaded with
new stone bottles, which were carried to a neighboring mineral-spring,
and thence were sent into all the world, even as far as Holland. Roland
was astonished to find how many kinds of occupation were requisite,
before the mineral-water was drunk at his father's table. For the
teamster, Holland was the end of the world; he was amazed when Roland
told him that there were many countries, even whole divisions of the
earth, much farther off than Holland. The teamster was surprised at
Roland's extensive knowledge, and inquired if he had ever been so far
away.

Roland gave an indirect reply. And now the teamster told him that he
himself was an honest fellow, that he had earned by hard work
everything which he had upon his back, and he would go hungry and beg,
before he would get anything by dishonest means. He advised Roland, if
he had done anything which made him afraid of being punished--if
perhaps he had stolen the ring--he had better return and give
everything up. Roland set the man at rest.

The road led through a small forest of handsome oak-trees. The
screeching of an owl was heard, Sounding like a mocking laugh.

"Thank God," said the teamster, "that you are with me; did you hear
that laugh?"

"That is no laugh, that was a screech-owl."

"Yes, screech-owl--that's the laughing spirit."

"The laughing-spirit? Tell me what that is."

"Yes; my mother heard it once in broad daylight, when she was just a
little girl. The children were at one time out there in the wood, to
get acorns. You perhaps know that they shake down the acorns and place
a white cloth under the tree, and catch them in that; it makes the best
food for hogs. Well, the children are in the woods on a fine afternoon
in autumn, the boys get up into the tree and shake down the acorns, and
there is such a rattling! Then they hear, all at once, in the thicket a
loud laugh. 'What is that?'--'O,' says my mother, 'that is a spirit.'
'What!' says a saucy fellow there, 'if it's a spirit, then I will just
for once take a look at him.' He goes into the thicket, and when he
once gets into the thicket, there sits a mighty little dwarf upon a
tree-stump; his head is almost bigger than his whole body, he is gray
all over, and he has a long gray beard. And the boy asks, 'Is't you
that laughed so?' 'Nobody else,' says the dwarf, and laughs once more,
exactly as before. 'You have shaken down the acorns, but there is one
fallen